TDP comparison:

Duron 700: 31.4W
Highest Socket 7 CPU: 29.6W (K6-2 475)
Pentium MMX: 17W or less

Any cooler is better than no cooler. However, it's better to use a larger cooler if you run programs with high CPU demands often.

And which part exactly "kicked the bucket"? The metallic fins can last very long; in most cases all you need is just a new fan.

The cooler should technically fit, but my concern would be it being undersized. Is it just the fan on the Duron cooler that died? If that's the case, I would suggest just replacing the fan.

Talking from recent experience in looking for a 462 cooler for a 1.4 Athlon classic (and a still ongoing thread here on vogons), new "old stock" ones on ebay and the internet in general are not that hard to come by, and for a Duron 700 you can even get the smaller and cheaper ones you find.
Take into account the bigger TDP of 462 chips when compared to intel ones, and also the fact that they should be run cool. The less power they use, the lower the suggested AMD temps are. I can't find the link with the table now, but IIRC, for low power parts they suggested maximum 45° for optimal temp. Of course you can run them higher, but expect reducing their lifespan. Not something you want to do with older parts.

So yeah, any new 462 cooler should be basically overkill for your Duron, and better safe than "toasted CPU".

And if it's just the fan that died, new compatible fans that have better CFM than older ones are even cheaper than a new cooler.

And which part exactly "kicked the bucket"

whenever I turn on the computer the fans just don't spin. The connector was on.

Is it just the fan on the Duron cooler that died? If that's the case, I would suggest just replacing the fan.

I don't think i have any fans that small of size, I could maybe look around though.

So yeah, any new 462 cooler should be basically overkill for your Duron, and better safe than "toasted CPU".

And if it's just the fan that died, new compatible fans that have better CFM than older ones are even cheaper than a new cooler.

I was actually shocked you could still buy coolers like that on amazon, Also, what size of fan would I need?

I will be using this computer on either NT 4.0 or 2000 but I'm probably going to use 2000. It will be used for maybe some extremely light gaming and for Microsoft Office. so i HOPE my computer won't burn to a crisp.

FrAEnk wrote on 2024-08-23, 12:26:

And which part exactly "kicked the bucket"

whenever I turn on the computer the fans just don't spin. The connector was on.

Best to check that the fan headers are still providing proper power. I have a motherboard where all the fan headers were working fine, I put it away for a few months and the next time I went to use it all the fan headers on the board would not spin the fans.

I still haven't taken the time to figure it out but when I test it with a multimeter it reads the proper voltage but when I hook up a single cpu fan the voltage on the pins drops so low it can't spin up the fan. Tried many 40mm and 50mm fans and results are the same and effects all the fan headers on the board no matter which one I hook the test fan to.

I don't have a multimeter nor do I know how to use one, I'll ask my dad if he has one. I'll still try using my socket 7 cooler fan as I'm pretty sure it would spin at a similar or same speed.

Actually, after looking at my Socket 7 cooler for the first time in months, it can confirm it's way smaller than my Duron cooler.

I'll try everything I can to get my CPU cooler working or just buy a new cooler/fan

Grem Five wrote on 2024-08-23, 14:10:

Best to check that the fan headers are still providing proper power. I have a motherboard where all the fan headers were working fine, I put it away for a few months and the next time I went to use it all the fan headers on the board would not spin the fans.

Happened to me once as well: the CPU fan header provided no power so I connected the fan to chassis fan header, but doing so would result BIOS warning me "no CPU fan detected" so I had to manually disable the false alarm.

Having a 4-pin MOLEX and/or 3-pin MB fan header 12V power supply other than a PSU or motherboard would be very handy as it provides an easy way to test your CPU or chassis fans (a retro hobbyist could have dozens of them).